Some of the US’s major allies appear more and more convinced that Barack
Obama is losing his political influence on the Syrian conflict and the fight
against the self-proclaimed Islamic State terror group, according an analysis
in the US media.

Key
US partners are increasingly fixing their eyes on Moscow rather
than Washington, writes Dan de Luce, a columnist for Foreign Policy.

According
to de Luce, the recent visit of Saudi Arabia’s defense minister
Mohammed bin Salman to the Russian city of Sochi showcases
on the one hand to what extent the “power dynamics” in the
Middle East has changed, and on the other — that, in US allies’ eyes,
President Putin is close to taking Barack Obama’s place of “regional
kingmaker.” The author pointed out that high-profile representatives
of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries are now “knocking on Putin’s
door instead of that of the Oval Office.”

The
visit of the Saudi minister, de Luce noted, suggests Riyadh is looking
into the opportunity of an agreement under which Syrian
president Bashar al-Assad would stay in power for a longer period
of time in exchange for the creation of Russian-Saudi joint
forces in the fight against IS.

“If the Saudi visit was coordinated with the US, that would be one
thing, but if it wasn’t, it was the Saudis again saying to us,
‘You’re irrelevant,’” FP quoted former US ambassador to Syria Ryan Crocker
as saying.

The
US’ key allies, alarmed by the recent Iran nuclear agreement
between Tehran and the P5+1 powers, seem to be arriving at the
conclusion that Obama is losing his significance and influence in terms
of the Syrian war and fight with IS.

Despite
the fact that the US maintains long-term alliances in the Middle East and
has huge military and economic might, some of their partners are seeking
reassurance amid ongoing events in Syria, and are probing
into Moscow-proposed initiatives.

For
instance, the visit of the Saudi defense minister to Russia coincided
with that of a senior military representative from the United
Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, de Luce
added.

Another
crucial regional ally of the US, Egypt, is also attempting to improve
relations with Moscow. The country’s leader Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has four
times visited Russia since coming to power in 2013, and has also
invited Putin to Cairo once. At the same time, the Egyptian president has
made only two trips to the US, and was supposed to be hosted
at the White House only once.

Israel
has also joined the list of those “knocking on Putin’s door,” de Luce
noted, referring to the late-September meeting of president Putin
with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The
White House, in its turn, has hopes that Russia will stumble in Syria.
Vali Nasr, a former senior State Department official, argued that if Moscow
achieves its objective and transforms its wins on the battlefield
to a political resolution of the war, it will eventually “translate
into much more regional influence [for Russia] in the Middle East.”

“And also many other countries in other regions of the world
may come to the conclusion that it’s not America that’s the indispensable
nation,” he concluded.

Dr. Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy and associate editor of the Wall Street Journal. He was columnist for Business Week, Scripps Howard News Service, and Creators Syndicate. He has had many university appointments. His internet columns have attracted a worldwide following. Roberts' latest books areThe Failure of Laissez Faire Capitalism and Economic Dissolution of the West